Thursday, April 29, 2010

I'm still plodding along with the trolls. Aside from everyday life eating into my painting time, I'm still learning how best to use acrylic paints. It's a big change from enamels. At times I feel as though I'm making progress and at other times I wonder if I should find a new hobby.

My "style", such as it is, seems to consist of a demolition derby of techniques: drybrushing, washes, layering, etc.. In particular, layering seems to be an important skill to master. I used it on the nose and tongue of the mini pictured here and was pleased with the results.

Both trolls are almost finished at this point. All that remains is touch-ups and varnishing. To borrow an old movie line, "I shall endeavor to persevere."

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Happy Earth Day y'all. To commemorate this most holy of holidays I generally hug a tree or sing carols in front of Al Gore's house. This year I'm breaking with tradition and striping the paint off an old miniature instead. I've read tutorials on the subject but, prior to my current experiments, have never attempted it.

"Am I missing something?", you wonder. "How is this in any way related to Earth Day?", you ask. Well, if you'd quit butting in with so many questions, I'll tell you. The Earth Day tie-in lies in the fact that I'll be using Simple Green, an eco-friendly cleaning product, rather than one of its harsher alternatives.

Today's test subject is this Ral Partha miniature acquired via eBay as part of a lot auction, fittingly encased in a thick coat of kelly-green enamel. A trial-run on a couple of the less desirable minis from the lot yielded satisfactory results. I'll repeat the method and hope for a similar outcome.

The procedure used was as follows:

Pour enough Simple Green into a metal can to cover mini

Place mini into can

Cover can and and allow to soak for 2 days

Use a stiff brush, toothpick, and running water to remove paint

Repeat steps 2-4 until desired results are achieved

This is how our subject looks after 3 baths. Not too bad. I initially used an old toothbrush to remove the paint but later supplemented this with a vegetable brush. Its longer, stiffer bristles seemed well suited to the task at hand. A toothpick proved useful in picking paint out of otherwise inaccessible recesses. A strainer in the sink is recommended so that any slip-ups won't result in a mini disappearing down the drain.

Well, I'm off to spend the rest of this Earth Day painting trolls and contemplating my carbon footprint. Hopefully I'll have more to report on the trolls in time for my next post.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

The two trolls offered by Otherworld are my current project. Progress has been slow but steady and they're just about ready for some paint. These minis are excellent sculpts, really have an old school feel, and offer a built in option for customization.

Each comes with two heads and seperate arms, all of which are designed to work equally well with the other model. I took advantage of this and used a head and both arms from troll I on troll II's body and vice-versa. Some filing and green stuff was needed in the end as I further altered the positioning of the arms. The use of wire pins at the shoulder joints helped to line everything up properly. Hopefully the resulting poses capture the essence of troll; one charging headlong into the fray and the other (pictured above) having just fixed his gaze on his next meal.

I'm still debating whether to go with a standard green color scheme or take a stab at the "putrid gray" mentioned in the first edition Monster Manual. While I"m trying to make up my mind, these WIP pictures may help to pass the time.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

I come before you today bearing eye-candy. As promised, the current post includes pictures of miniatures that I painted back in the day… the 1980’s… when the A-team still walked the earth and enamel paints ruled. For starters, here’s a link to a thread on the Otherworld Miniatures forum where I posted a few examples a while back.

But wait, there’s more! I’ve honed my puny photographic abilities somewhat since then through trial-and-error and the receipt of a tripod for Christmas. At this point, pride of authorship tempts me to shout something cheesy like, “Feast your eyes on these!”, but journalistic integrity compels me to keep my composure. At any rate, here is a new batch to look at: link. Enjoy.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

So, here it is. My blog. Myfirst attempt at one of these things. Should anyone else ever read this, please bear with me. As the snappy subtitle implies, my focus will be the miniature hobby; gaming miniatures to be more precise. I recently reentered the hobby after a long absence so before going on to new business it may be worthwhile to present samples of my older work. I’ll see about dusting off some of my old lead in time for my next update.